Replacing an old Android device with the X? Good luck...

[Stang68]

Hey everyone,

I don't wanna bring people down, but if you're replacing an older Android device (or any Android device, for that matter) with a Droid X, get ready to lose all of your application data like high scores, notes in notepads, passwords in password keepers, etc.

Google does not have a way to move all of that information to a new or replacement device unless you're on 2.2...and the X is only on 2.1. I am looking forward to getting my Droid X, but am NOT looking forward to writing down all of my notes and passwords and other options down onto a piece of paper.

I've had to do it once before, and I thought My Backup Pro would save me...well, it doesn't. Actually, My Backup Pro is not a good program in that it installs your applications from an SD card and not from the Market, meaning the Market doesn't recognize the apps on your device and will not prompt you for updates to you apps...ever.

I wish Google had a nice, easy way to transfer EVERYTHING from one Android device to another, kind of like Blackberry's Desktop Manager. I wish Google had a desktop application just so we can backup everything to a safe location and not just the "cloud".

**** you, Google. I'll buy the X, but I won't like it.

Ok, I will like it...but I won't like transferring everything.

 

[showson1]

It all depends on what applications you use, this is why I chose apps that wrote its data out to the SDCard.

For instance, for password management I use is Keepassdroid which uses a database that resides on your SD card.
The mileage app I use can backup to the SD card and then restore, the weight management app can also backup and restore, etc...

All I have to do is load the apps on the new phone, copy the data off the SD card (or swap the card) and do a restore in whatever app needs the restore.
Not sure about the high score deal, I don't really play games on it.

I've used this several times when swapping SD cards and loading new ROMs on my N1 and it's worked fine.

 

[natrixgli]

Great, thanks for reminding me about the *ONE* thing I actually liked about iTunes...

On the other hand I'm just the kind of nerd that likes starting from scratch with every new toy I get. Doesn't Android store your notes and such via IMAP or Exchange?

-n8

 

[Stang68]

It all depends on what applications you use, this is why I chose apps that wrote its data out to the SDCard.

For instance, for password management I use is Keepassdroid which uses a database that resides on your SD card.
The mileage app I use can backup to the SD card and then restore, the weight management app can also backup and restore, etc...

All I have to do is load the apps on the new phone, copy the data off the SD card (or swap the card) and do a restore in whatever app needs the restore.
Not sure about the high score deal, I don't really play games on it.

I've used this several times when swapping SD cards and loading new ROMs on my N1 and it's worked fine.

Totally agree with you. Apps that use a backup function via the SD card are great, but not all do that. I'll check out that password one, though

Unfortunately, that's about where the convenience ends.

 

[anon26174]

It can be a bit of a pain in the ass, but a part of me kind of likes the whole process of setting everything up fresh. I often find I end up not re-installing some of the apps I did on the old device because I perform a bit of "housecleaning" as it were, and discover what I really need, plus it gives me a good amount of time to get to know my new phone. But maybe I'm just a sadist.

Still, I agree, it'd be nice if apart from SD-card backup, there was a way Google could make your OS remember every setting from your old phone to make the transition more seamless, especially if you're using identical apps!

 

[Stang68]

Yes, you're just a sadist

 

[Cory Streater]

I hate this also. I don't mind reconfiguring settings in some apps, and I really appreciate that others (Like Touchdown) allow you to export settings, but what I don't like are apps that write all their data internally. For example, I use a program that allows me to create email templates. It's the only app that I'm aware of that provides this functionality. However, all those templates are stored in internal memory, so I have to recreate all of them each time I do a hard reset or get a new phone. Thankfully, Froyo will take care of this.